Nicole Yeargin (born 11 August 1997)[1] is a British-American athlete representing Great Britain who specialises in the 400 metres. She won major medals as part of British women's and mixed 4 x 400 m relays, including bronzes at the 2022 World Athletics Championships and 2023 World Athletics Championships. She won two bronze medals at the 2024 Summer Olympics as part of both the British mixed and women's 4 x 400 metres relay teams.

Nicole Yeargin
Yeargin in 2022
Personal information
Born (1997-08-11) 11 August 1997 (age 27)
Maryland, U.S.
Sport
CountryGreat Britain & N.I.
Scotland
SportSport of Athletics
Event400 metres
College teamUSC Trojans
Medal record
Women's athletics
Representing  Great Britain
Olympic Games
Bronze medal – third place 2024 Paris 4×400 m relay
Bronze medal – third place 2024 Paris 4×400 m mixed
World Championships
Bronze medal – third place 2022 Eugene 4×400 m relay
Bronze medal – third place 2023 Budapest 4×400 m relay
European Championships
Bronze medal – third place 2022 Munich 4×400 m relay
Representing  Scotland
Commonwealth Games
Bronze medal – third place 2022 Birmingham 4×400 m relay

She has also won bronze in the 4 x 400 m relay for Scotland at the 2022 Commonwealth Games.

Yeargin is the Scottish indoor record holder for the 400 m.

Early and personal life

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Nicole Yeargin was born on 11 August 1997 and studied real estate development at the University of Southern California. Initially focused in high school on gymnastics, football (soccer), and American football, she began running track her senior year at Bishop McNamara High School. In 2019, she recorded personal bests of 23.26 seconds in the 200 metres and 52.76 seconds for the 400 metres.[2] With an upbringing in Maryland, U.S. but with a mother from Dunfermline, Yeargin was cleared to represent Scotland in May 2020.[3] Yeargin stated that her favourite thing about the United Kingdom are sausage rolls.[4]

Career

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In May 2021, Yeargin clocked a personal best in the 400 m of 51.39 seconds to put her into second place in the British rankings for the season, and made it a double in terms of Commonwealth Games qualifying times with a 23.18 seconds run in the 200 m, which took her to fifth on the Scottish all-time lists.[5] In June of the same year, she achieved the Olympic qualifying standard in the women’s 400 m with a new personal best of 50.96 seconds to reach the NCAA final, which moved her up to third on the Scottish all-time 400 metres list behind Allison Curbishley (50.71) and Lee McConnell (50.82).[6] She also secured a place in the British team for the delayed 2020 Tokyo Olympics at the British Olympic Trials.[7][8] At the Games, Yeargin was disqualified in the heats of the individual women's 400 m, and placed fifth and sixth with the women's 4 x 400 m relay and mixed 4 x 400 m relay teams respectively.[1]

Yeargin reached the semi-finals of the 400 metres event at the 2022 World Athletics Championships in Eugene, Oregon.[9] At the Munich European Championships a month later, she was part of British 4 x 400 quartet than ran the second fastest time ever by a British women's team of 3:21.74.[10] Her own split time was 49.7 seconds.[11]

Competing at the British Athletics Championships in July 2023, in Manchester, she reached the final of the women's 400m and finished in 6th place.[12] She was chosen to represent Great Britain at the 2023 World Athletics Championships in Budapest in August 2023.[13]

In April 2024, she was selected as part of the British team for the 2024 World Athletics Relays in Nassau, Bahamas.[14] In July, Yeargin was named in the Great Britain 4x400 metres relay squad for the 2024 Summer Olympics [15] She was part of the mixed 4x400 team which set a new national record of 3:10.61 in the qualifying heat, she did not run in the final but won a bronze medal due to her run in the heats.[16][17]In the women's 4x400m relay She was part of the final along with Victoria Ohuruogu, Laviai Nielsen and Amber Anning, as they set a new national record of 3:19.72 to win bronze. [18]

Personal bests

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References

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  1. ^ a b "Nicole YEARGIN – Athlete Profile". World Athletics. Retrieved 1 January 2023.
  2. ^ "Nicole Yeargin Team GB". 7 August 2021.
  3. ^ "Athletes declare for Scotland". 25 May 2020.
  4. ^ "US college hopeful on plans to run for Scottish Athletics". The Herald. 30 May 2020.
  5. ^ "Laura wins at 800m again and Nicole lands two Commonwealth 2022 standards". 17 May 2021.
  6. ^ "Laura best 1500m for five years; Jemma wins again; Nicole third all-time 400m; Steph ready for Japan". 11 June 2021.
  7. ^ "USC Price Student-Athlete to Compete in 2021 Tokyo Olympics". USC Sol Price School of Public Policy. 7 July 2020.
  8. ^ "Four Scots secure Olympic places". BBC Sport.
  9. ^ "Nicole runs to world semi-final in Oregon". 20 July 2022.
  10. ^ "HODGKINSON AND MEN'S 4X400M RELAY STORM TO GOLDEN GLORY AT EUROS". British Athletics. 20 August 2022. Retrieved 20 August 2022.
  11. ^ "Nicole lands a third 4x400m Relay medal as Jemma finishes fifth". Scottish Athletics. 20 August 2022. Retrieved 20 August 2022.
  12. ^ "400 m-Women Final Finished 09/07/2023". ukacm2023. 9 July 2023. Retrieved 10 July 2023.
  13. ^ "GREAT BRITAIN AND NORTHERN IRELAND SQUAD SELECTED FOR THE 2023 WORLD ATHLETICS CHAMPS". Britishathletics.org.uk. 28 July 2023. Retrieved 28 July 2023.
  14. ^ "Ujah returns to British squad for world relays". BBC Sport. 11 April 2024. Retrieved 12 April 2024.
  15. ^ "TEAM GB ATHLETICS SQUAD CONFIRMED FOR PARIS 2024". GB Athletics. Retrieved 19 July 2024.
  16. ^ "MIXED 4X400M RELAY TEAM DROP NEW NATIONAL RECORD AS 800M WOMEN ALL THROUGH IN HEATS". British Athletics. Retrieved 3 August 2024.
  17. ^ "Great Britain win mixed 4x400m relay bronze". BBC Sport. Retrieved 3 August 2024.
  18. ^ Mulkeen, Jon (10 August 2024). "USA wins eighth successive Olympic women's 4x400m gold in Paris". World Athletics. Retrieved 23 August 2024.
  19. ^ "Weekend round-up [27-29 January 2023]". British Athletics. 29 January 2023. Retrieved 29 January 2023.
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